Two-thousand-year-old Dead Sea Scroll fragments, containing script previously invisible to the naked eye, were discovered and presented last week at an international conference honoring 70 years since the scroll’s discovery in Judean Desert cave.

The script was identified by an Israel Antiquities Authority researcher using advanced imaging technology originally developed for NASA. The discovery provides new clues and information for the study of the scrolls, one of the most important archaeological discoveries of the 20th century.

When the fragments were discovered in the 1950s by archaeologists and Bedouin in the caves near Qumran, they were placed in boxes without being sorted or deciphered due to their small size and delicate state.

Recently, as part of a project by the Israel Antiquities Authority to digitize the scrolls and make high-quality images available to the public, samples from the boxes were examined using new imaging technology capable of identifying script on some fragments. One of the fragments may even indicate the existence of a previously unknown manuscript.

The new script was discovered by Oren Ableman, a scroll researcher at the Dead Sea Scrolls Unit of the Israel Antiquities Authority and a PhD student at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, as he examined fragments found in “Cave 11” near Qumran.

Conservation of the Dead Sea Scrolls at the Israel Antiquities Authority’s lab. Photo by Shai Halevi

Ableman observed that traces of ink on certain fragments appeared blank to the naked eye. He was able to decipher the script and identify the manuscripts some of the new fragments may have belonged to.

New fragments of known scrolls were discovered and identified from the books of Deuteronomy, Leviticus and Jubilees.

Of particular interest to researchers are a fragment from the Temple Scroll, a text dealing with directions for conducting the services in the ideal Temple; a fragment from the Great Psalms Scroll (11Q5); and a fragment written in ancient Paleo-Hebrew that may be part of an unknown manuscript.

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Rebecca Stadlen Amir is writer and stylist originally from New York. Prior to relocating to Tel Aviv, she was an editor at Vogue for more than four years, covering design and lifestyle. In Israel, she has utilized her editorial eye to produce content strategies for several startups. In addition to writing for ISRAEL21c, Rebecca works as a stylist for brands and events. She loves to travel and explore the world with her husband.